Congratulations! You have happened upon our website, where you’ll find information on all our future and past events (going back to 2010!). We are Nerd Nite SF, a monthly lecture-in-a-bar series where people from all walks of life give presentations on everything from video game design to historic shipwrecks. We’ve hosted mimes, musicians and everyone in between, with the goal of being entertaining, silly, and most of all, educational. Come learn a new fact, make a new friend, or try a new drink! Rickshaw Stop creates a special drink based on the month’s presentations!
Welcome to Nerd Nite SF, 3rd Wednesdays at Rickshaw Stop!
Nerd Nite SF #162: “Curing” Hysteria, The Sharks of San Francisco Bay, and Who Speaks for Earth?
Is it really that time again? Another Nerd Nite so soon? Yes, dear nerds, I’m pleased to say it’s true: Nerd Nite SF returns to Rickshaw Stop on July 15th at 7pm! Have you ever wondered who on Earth is (officially) trying to talk to aliens? Have you ever wondered what “hysteria” actually was as a “medical condition” or how it was “cured?” Did you know that there’s some really heckin’ old sharks living in the Bay and if you want you can join a research team to study them? (it’s true! you literally just sign up!) We’ve all got a lot of questions these days; the world is a confusing place. Luckily, we’ve got some answers. Come on down!
Messaging ET: Who Speaks for Earth?
By: Julia DeMarines
Did you know that humans have sent over a dozen high powered messages to space to intentionally get a response from potential ET onlookers? While most people aren’t aware of these activities, these messages speak on behalf of humanity and all beings on our planet who have no say in the matter! This raises ethical questions: Should we be messaging at all? What should these messages say? And most importantly, who speaks for Earth? In this talk I will discuss the Dear ET project – an international effort that bridges active philosophy and STEAM education to raise awareness of these messaging efforts, support legitimate global representation, and hopefully enact messaging policy in the future.
Julia DeMarines is an Astrobiologist working as a senior scientist on evolutionary intelligence for a data architecture company treating AI like an ET. She is a National Geographic Explorer and Educator, a (sorta) grad student in UC Berkeley’s Earth & Planetary Science, and a researcher with the Blue Marble Space Institute of Science. She was recently appointed as an early-career liaison for the SETI Institute’s new Discoveries and Futures lab and serves on the advisory board for NSF’s NCAR Education, Engagement & Early-Career Development program. Her research involves detecting life in space through biosignatures and technosignatures and the ethics of sending messages to contact aliens. Julia’s work in astrobiology is driven by her curiosity and passion for exploring the unknown, and she is committed to advancing our understanding of the universe and our place within it. When she’s not engaged in science and communication, she can be found avoiding UFO conversations, cracking Uranus jokes, mountain biking, lifting with the bros, and rock climbing.
“Curing” Hysteria: Strange Remedies and Women’s Resistance in the 19th-Century U.S.
By: Vivian Wolf
In the nineteenth-century United States, women diagnosed with hysteria and other nervous disorders were prescribed treatments including prolonged bed rest, all-milk diets, hydrotherapy, and electrical stimulation. This talk examines the cultural and economic forces behind these so-called cures while exploring how writers challenged prevailing ideas about health.
Vivian Delchamps Wolf (PhD, UCLA English, 2022) is an Assistant Professor of English at Dominican University of California. Her research and teaching focus upon 19th-century American literature and feminist disability studies. Her book in progress, Resisting Diagnosis: Women’s Disability Literature of the 19th-Century U.S., analyzes the ways women writers use literature to challenge harmful issues within medical systems and beyond.
Sharks of San Francisco Bay: What We Know, What We are Learning, and How You can Take Part
By: Meghan Holst
San Francisco Bay is home to a diverse and historically significant population of sharks, but much remains unknown about their long-term conservation needs. In this talk, Dr. Meghan Holst of Ocean Science Expedition Academy (OSEA) will share what we currently know about Bay sharks, the critical research questions OSEA is working to answer, and how the organization is creating equitable, hands-on opportunities for community members to take part in real marine science. Whether you’re a curious local or an aspiring researcher, you’ll leave with a new appreciation for the sharks in your backyard and how you can help protect them.
Dr. Meghan Holst is a marine scientist and University of California, Davis researcher studying sharks, rays, and skates in San Francisco Bay. She is working to characterize the Bay as a critical reproductive area for elasmobranchs while identifying threats to these populations from contaminants and environmental stressors. Driven by a commitment to inclusive science, she co-founded Ocean Science Expedition Academy (OSEA), a nonprofit sustaining long-term shark research in San Francisco Bay while creating pathways for community members to develop field skills and engage in local marine science. Her work is defined not only by the science she produces, but by the community she is building around it; one that reflects the full diversity of people who care about our oceans.
Featuring Friends of the Show:
The SF Public Library
DJ & Jelly
Nerd Nite SF #161: Rethinking the ABCs, Belly Dancing, and the Definition of Art
Have you ever had an experience that made you question everything you thought you knew? Maybe you’ve been in an “altered state” due to “consuming” “substances” and had the thought: where did the ABC’s come from? like, have we always had them? Or maybe you’ve been to a particularly cool party or cultural event and seen some belly dancing – and wondered where that core-centric dance came from. Sometimes you just get really really into it and ask: what even is ART? For answers to these mind-bending questions (and more!), join us at Rickshaw Stop on June 24th at 7pm and be prepared to QUESTION EVERYTHING.*
How the ABC’s (Don’t) Work
By: Amanda Maillet
I’m sure folks have heard we’re in the midst of a literacy crisis, but do they know what actually goes into learning to read? How about how the ABCs work, or rather don’t, and why we should all be way more pissed off about it? How about how the Vikings and Klingon connect to all this?
Amanda has a BA in Linguistics from the University of New Hampshire and an MS in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences from San Francisco State University. She currently works as Speech Therapist and especially loves early intervention (birth-age 3). Parents come to her absolutely terrified that their toddler isn’t talking yet and then come in a few months later absolutely exhausted because now they have learned how to argue. Thankfully, before becoming a speech therapist, she spent many years working as a nanny and learned, the hard way, what actually works and what absolutely does not when trying to reason with someone still very much acclimating to their own existence.
Hips don’t lie—or do they? Belly Dance History through the Ages
By: Nishita Rao
What if I told you that the term ‘Belly Dance” does not exist in any African language or in Arabic? So what is belly dance then? What role did the French, the Austrians, the English and even the Russians play in charting this oriental fantasy? Join me as I revisit the dances of Egypt! This session will highlight the 30+ Egyptian dances that existed prior to colonization: Hagala, Alexandrian, Melaya Leff, Henna, Semsemiya, Bambotiya, Dahia, Mashreqiya, Debka, Fallahi, Ghawazee, Gypsy, Baladi, Jawary, Awalem, Oriental, Saidi, Tahtieb game, Bedouin, Kaffafa, Zagala, Burmia Baharia, and more.
Nishita Rao is a Transdisciplinary Sex Researcher and Educator. Her current research delves into sex worker art forms in India and Egypt. Her broader research investigates how culture and politics influence the evolution of human social and sexual attitudes, perceptions, behaviors and artistic expressions in post-colonial societies. She hails from an academic background in Neuroscience (M.S) and Biotechnology (B.E). Nishita is also the First Indian to become an AASECT Certified Sex Educator (CSE).
State of the Art: The Historical & Ongoing Struggle to Define Art
By: Derek Zhao
What is art? For something so pervasive in our lives, art is notoriously difficult to define. Just consider the cliches and the problems they introduce. “Art makes you feel something.” So does a sunset. “Art is something made with skill and intention.” So is a highway. “Art is how we communicate feelings words can’t.” So is a panic attack. If we move beyond the slogans, rigorous philosophical definitions face similar challenges. Plato tried to make one. Tolstoy tried. Arthur Danto tried. And yet, appreciators, artists, curators, and philosophers are still left unsatisfied. I will walk you through this fascinating history of attempts to define art, show you what the current philosophical [ahem] state of the art currently is, and propose my own humble framework.
Derek Zhao is random. He is currently a machine learning engineer at Disney after retiring from a past life composing music for film and television. He has since worked in data and ML roles at NASA, Electronic Arts, and Discord. In his spare time, he pretends to be a photographer on Instagram, which leads him to constantly ask… “But is it art?”
Featuring Friends of the Show:
*Well, question most things. Be judicious about it. Sometimes reality really is just that weird.
Nerd Nite SF #160: Japanese Cocktail Histories, How to Throw a FUNCTION, and This is NOT Legal Advice
We like to have a good time here at Nerd Nite. In fact, we think of our show as a kind of educational party, a one-bar crawl through the beautiful strangeness of the world and all the fascinating things in it, brought to you every month with a healthy dose of liquid courage. That’s why this month we’re featuring three spectacular speakers who will get your party going! Every party needs good drinks and every party-er needs good anecdotes to keep the conversation rolling, so where better to start than a cocktail that tells the history of Japan’s modern drinking culture? Once you’ve picked your drinks of choice it’s time to call in a professional party planner – get ready to learn the art and science of throwing a FUNCTION. Of course, most parties get a little bit out of control at some point (at least, the good ones do), and when that happens you need to know just how close you can get to the letter of the law without going over. (We have to assume that party cops follow The Price is Right rules.) So come on down to the Rickshaw Stop on May 27th at 7pm for all you need to know to get this party started!
Throughline: Japanese Cocktail History in a Glass
Bart Bernhardt
When Commodore Perry forced Japan at gunpoint to end its policy of isolationism, it ushered in an era of change that reverberates to this day. With Western visitors came Western vices, such as the cocktail. We’ll learn how this American culinary invention became a fixture of modern Japan by looking at a single drink – The Line, invented by Yonekichi Maeda in 1924 – and how gunboat diplomacy, wars, jazz, earthquakes, and especially women – created Japanese cocktail culture. And how, 100 years later, that culture now influences American bartending.
Bart is a bartender at The Interval at Long Now. The Long Now Foundation is a nonprofit dedicated to cultivating long-term thinking, and regularly hosts fascinating lectures, creates art, and many other projects. The Interval is the bar/cafe and social space for the Long Now, and has been named “Best Cocktail Bar” in San Francisco Magazine.
The Anatomy of a Function
Arthur Jackson
Nobody knows how to have fun any more, what ever happened to fun? New York [San Francisco] is over! O-V-E-R! OVER. I’m so bored I could die. No one is dancing anymore when they should be breaking their spines on the dancefloor! When was the last time you held your friend’s hair back while she vomited in the boys urinal? Have you ever shot a beer pong ball from your mouth and won the game? When’s the last time you stunted on these hoes?
Arthur Jackson V is a gay Bay Area artist of many disciplines- bartender, painter, DJ, Poet, and actor. His goal is to find a way to marry all of these parts of himself together, and keep alive the saying « Shake a tail feather ». At the heart of it he’s a storyteller, waiting for you near a fire, with a bottle of wine, a pack of stogues, and music to spin.
This Talk is *NOT* Legal Advice
Julia Rose McCoy
Ever wondered what legal rules attorneys might follow of their own free will, sort of just for kicks? Well now you can watch a real life attorney muse out loud to herself about arbitration agreements, interacting with the police, and what she wishes people knew about securing legal assistance using the thinly veiled metaphor of Dungeons and Dragons! Hey, what’s this room full of people doing here? Hope they don’t hear her musings, because then they might think it was legal advice, which it isn’t. After all, she is an attorney, she’s just not your attorney.
Julia Rose McCoy is a plaintiff’s side employment attorney, a total legal dork, and a middling public speaker. In her spare time, she plays dungeons and dragons, tries to leash train her cat, and rants to her partner about the news. She is a staunch anticapitalist and lifelong fan of both jazz and the San Francisco Public Library. Please come speak to her after the talks about whatever nerdy thing is running your life right now.
Featuring Friends of the Show:
Nerd Nite SF #159: Karaoke, Naval Misadventures, and Wild Fermentation
Ready for another good, old-fashioned, classic Nerd Nite SF? We’re back at it again at the Rickshaw and ready to rumble! It’s been fun experimenting with format and location for our first few shows of the year, but you just can’t beat a classic Nerd Night show: We’ve got talks about the art and philosophy of karaoke, the not-so-human origins of the very human love for booze, and a howling history of the unluckiest ship to ever sail under the US flag. It’s all going down at 7pm on Thursday, April 16th at the Rickshaw Stop. See you there!
Presentations
Life, Love, Death, and the Other Self of Karaoke
By: Benjamin Poynter
A talk chronicling data and studies behind real-life excursions into the activity of karaoke across Los Angeles and the cities of Japan. After a certain point, when does the regular self transform into the ‘other’ self when participating in karaoke nights long enough, and what are the parallels, constructive or destructive, between those two selves that reveal themselves? Karaoke is a pastime that has moved beyond a fun, nighttime affair into a form in which people rely on it as a means of expressing and confessing what they normally cannot in daily life. Out of that, tales of love, lifelong friendship, tragedy, inventions, and even language study have come out of the speaker’s excursions. This talk is paired with an ongoing project where 125+ Japanese songs have been performed publicly as a means of studying the language and a special, interactive game, which is now in development out of those experiences.
Ben has most certainly been. He is a world-traveled artist, engineer, inventor, and kid at heart. Whether patenting innovative technologies for Las Vegas venues out of Los Angeles, acting as an exhibiting artist and professor in Beijing, developing wacky contraptions for the latest new media devices in New York City, or en route to a destination that is exciting or interesting, there is no shortage of challenges or skill sets that may call. These unique skills have emanated from the gaming realm, emerging technology, robotics, digital and visual art, performance, and mentorship. Roles span across Sphere, Madison Square Garden, Nickelodeon, Looking Glass, and New York Institute of Technology. This journey has been 10 years plus and ongoing. He resides in Los Angeles and has an affinity for exploring. When not innovating in the studio, he acts accordingly at the skate park or the karaoke lounge.
Get Down, Mr. President! The Unluckiest Ship in the History of the US Navy
By: Sam Litt
Tired of constantly hearing depressing news about the current US military? Come have a laugh at the hapless and absurd tale of a US Naval destroyer from WWII instead! Forget about your dread of endless American imperialism with this true story of 1940’s US militaristic incompetence, and learn how we nearly lost the Second World War – to ourselves.
Sam has always loved learning random facts and stories, particularly ones that ease his impending sense of political turmoil. When he isn’t at work in the lab or utterly consumed by current events, he enjoys combing through SF’s thrift stores and perusing Wikipedia for fascinating nuggets (and is especially fond of the Random Article button). Though he hopes that a deep obsession with WWII history won’t completely engross him until retirement, he begrudgingly admits to having watched simulations of Pacific Theater battles on YouTube (despite his active disdain for the military industrial complex).
Wild Fermentation, The Chimpanzee Diet & The Origins of Alcohol Production
By: Aleksey Maro
Why are humans attracted to alcohol? The answer might be buried in the fruit-filled diet of our early ancestors. Following the ‘Drunken Monkey’ hypothesis, Aleksey measured the alcohol content in fruits eaten by our nearest relatives—chimpanzees—and found they’re essentially knocking back 1–2 drinks a day. Join us as we track the evolutionary trail from fermented forest fruit to the mysterious origins of that which has brought us here today (beer).
Aleksey immigrated from the USSR in the 90s and took the long road to science. Instead of getting a degree in history, he dropped out and traveled the country for years, receiving insights only lived experiences can bring. His love of history brought him back to academia through the forensic detective work of biological anthropology. He is motivated to explore and understand the origins of humanity and what brought us here, to help our species intelligently navigate into the next epoch.
Featuring Friend of the Show:
Nerd Nite SF#156: Exploratorium Collab!: Time Travel, Event Design, and the Science of Perceiving the World
The spooky season is finally here! Dust off your cobwebs, set up your 12ft tall yard skeletons, and mark your calendars for the Nerd Nite SF 2025 season finale! It’s our last show of the year and we’ve got talks to cover spooky situations like falling into a time vortex (how do you defend yourself if you wind up in another era?), questioning whether your senses are lying to you (sure, let’s add more existential terror to our lives), and how to survive the most terrifying thing of all: Public Speaking.
All this and so much more on October 22nd at 7pm at the Rickshaw Stop! Tickets are a frightfully good deal: $15 per head!*
Self-Defense For Time Travelers
By: Mike Capozzola
Mike Capozzola is a London-based, American comedian and actor. He’s performed in most of the USA and in 25 countries across the UK, Europe and Middle East. Mike played the ‘Veteran MiB agent’ in “Men in Black International” and has appeared in “The Phantom of the Open” and “The Batman.” Find more of his work at www.IMDb.me/MikeCapozzola.
At the intersection of history and theoretical physics, comedian Mike Capozzola looks at the unexpected consequences of irresponsible Time-Travel. Learn non-lethal, humane ways to outsmart velociraptors, fisticuffs champ, a centaur and a 1950’s American ‘Greaser.’
Disagreeing About Your Senses
By: Zeke Kossover
Have you ever wondered if your blue might be some else’s green? Thought we’d never know? Some really clever experiments have shed insight into personal sensory domains that were thought only answerable by philosophy. Join me as we look at some sensory illusions and what they can tell us about how brains process the world.
Marc “Zeke” Kossover was an Albert Einstein Distinguished Education Fellow and 21-year veteran teacher before dying and going to teacher heaven and becoming an educator at the Exploratorium.
Experiments in Experience: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Event Design
By: Amanda Freise
Whether you’ve stumbled through a music festival, sipped wine at an art opening, or found yourself learning quantum physics in a bar…none of that happened by accident. Someone designed that event with you (and maybe your tipsy friends) in mind. Together we’ll pull back the curtain on how public art and science programs are crafted to invite creativity and curiosity, while leaving plenty of room for playfulness and connection.
Amanda Freise is Senior Program Developer on the Public Programs team at the Exploratorium. Trained as a molecular pharmacologist, she earned her PhD and taught microbiology at UCLA before realizing her true fascination wasn’t with microbes and molecules, but with people and how they connect. Along the way, she discovered the power of art, dance, and a really sick subwoofer. Thanks to her Type A personality, Amanda has led a Burning Man camp, organized science talks in the desert, produced music festivals, and curated art at these events — all experiences she now channels into designing public programs that blend art, science, and play in unexpected ways.
*If you bring a sack of heads you will be charged for each head individually.
Nerd Nite SF #155: Phages, Nudibranchs (Sea Slugs), and Speech Therapy
We’re bringing the late summer heat with three amazing talks! Who needs antibiotics when you’ve got viruses to fight on your behalf? Sounds too good to be true? How about the REAL nudies under the sea? Who knew sea slugs could be so dazzling? And how do you teach kids to talk? Perhaps more importantly, how to you get them to stop talking? So many questions, so little time. Come on down for all the answers you never knew you wanted on September 17th, 7pm at the Rickshaw Stop. Tickets just $15! What a bargain, what a deal!
Phage Against the Machine: A History of Bacteriophages
By: Yug Varma
What’s a phage? How come I’ve never heard of it before? And how will phages save us from superbugs? Join Yug as we explore the brief history of bacteriophages, one of nature’s deadliest creatures that thankfully doesn’t hunt us. As we learn how the most momentous events of the 20th century shaped the fate of phages, we will learn what the future could hold for this enemy of our enemies.
Yug Varma is a biochemist and microbiologist who studies the microbiome and has been obsessed with phages for 20 years. He has a PhD from Johns Hopkins University and conducted research at UCSF. He now leads a phage startup that is trying to change how we treat chronic bacterial diseases. When he’s not cooking or fermenting things, he reads and sings to his beloved dog Xena.
Please Send Nudes: Fancy Slugs of the Sea
By: Tiffany Alcock
The ocean is full of vibrant, colorful marine life, but few are as fantastically arranged and strikingly decorated as the gastropod molluscs known as nudibranchs. Found worldwide and at virtually all depths, nudibranchs really get around! Get (your feet) wet with this dive into the bizarre body parts, sexy dance moves, and fabulous outfits of sea slugs.
Tiffany is a life-long water babe, who knew she would one day be a diver after taking a Discover Scuba class at age 10. Having logged 65-70 dives in chilly Monterey, CA, she daydreams of returning to warmer waters like Bali or Hawaii, but also would like to dive each of the Great Lakes. Tiffany spends her “dry spells” between dives teaching pottery, doing crafts, and playing board games.
How to Teach Kids to Talk (and How to Deal with Them When They Do)
By: Amanda Maillet
Some pet peeves and pro tips from a speech therapist who’s spent the last decade and a half negotiating with toddlers and teaching others how to do the same. We’ll go through some bad advice, better alternatives, and the brain science behind how we as humans learn to communicate.
Amanda has a BA in Linguistics from the University of New Hampshire and an MS in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences from San Francisco State University. She currently works as Speech Therapist and especially loves early intervention (birth-age 3). Parents come to her absolutely terrified that their toddler isn’t talking yet and then come in a few months later absolutely exhausted because now they have learned how to argue. Thankfully, before becoming a speech therapist, she spent many years working as a nanny and learned, the hard way, what actually works and what absolutely does not when trying to reason with someone still very much acclimating to their own existence.